Washington - US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo pressed Afghanistan's Taliban to come to the table to end the long-running war as he called on Pakistan to play a supportive role, the State Department said yesterday. Pompeo "agreed that there was momentum to advance the Afghan peace process, and that the Afghan Taliban should seize the opportunity for dialogue," Nauert said of the meeting, which took place Tuesday. President Donald Trump has doubled down on the war effort in Afghanistan despite his past calls to end the longest-ever US war. The State Department notably did not say whether Pompeo addressed Pakistan's position on extremism. In August, Pompeo congratulated Khan in a telephone call on taking office, with the State Department saying that he asked Islamabad to "take decisive action against all terrorists operating in Pakistan."

Source: Philippine Star October 03, 2018 17:15 UTC